US Visa refusals still high in Guyana

According to the figures released by the US State Department, half of the Guyanese who apply for Visitor or Business travel visas are refused the right to travel to the US. The US reported the Visa refusals for countries around the world that showed for last year, that the Caribbean, for the most part, has lower visa refusals.

Guyana is up there however, in the Caribbean for high visa refusals, just above Jamaica and just below Haiti for high visa refusals. Haiti is at 58.2% while Guyana is about seven points down at 51.5%. It means the United States Consular Officers believe that the Guyanese are trying to abandon their place of residence to remain in the United States for economic gain or that they have no strong financial or other ties to their home country.

It should be noted that Guyana falls into nearly the same Category as Canada in the Americas. But Canadian passport holders do not really need visas to travel to the United States. Several of the applicants in Canada are foreign immigrants including Guyanese who seek to enter the United States from there.

For years Guyanese have been fleeing “This Land of The Free” for “the Home of the Brave” and some have resorted to unorthodox and unlawful means including backtracking or fraudulent documentation. The US has refused to consider several documents produced in Guyana for visa applications.